Chapter One Hundred Thirty-Two

Unbearable, constant pain and heat wracked Kaoru's entire body. Everything was on fire, to the point of freezing, and the area beneath her scars and marriage seal swelled with pressure. A pressure so heavy she could hardly breathe. Her skin felt brittle, her bones as if she might crumble into a thousand pieces, and her muscles tore at themselves as they attempted to find some pose that would free her from torment. All of it was foreign, but also frighteningly familiar. A long time ago, a lifetime ago, Kaoru had experienced something similar. That moment three hundred years prior when the Kagu-tsuchi had been driven through her chest, resulting in her death.

"Kenshin! Please!" Every ounce of breath that she could muster was forced into the scream, tearing at the newly healed vocal cords Tsubame had soothed. The little floral spirit backed away from her, afraid and uncertain what to do. Casting concealed sapphire irises to the sky overhead, Kaoru watched in a daze as the barrier came down, but her brain was too far steeped in suffering to feel relief. Desperation had taken hold of her, and her world had narrowed to a single truth. Only her husband could save them. Only her husband knew what needed to be done.

"Kenshin!" Another tormented scream, this one broken by a half-sob. Vaguely, she was aware of Tsubame running away down the alleyway behind her. "You promised to look at me! You promised!" There were other voices behind her now. Their tone was clearly worried as they called out her name. One, a voice that rumbled like a chasm, said something about breaking the tendrils holding her aloft. Weakened, and hanging limply in place, Kaoru felt more than saw the moment Kenshin appeared at the opposite entrance to the alley.

Calls were made to him from behind her, their tones now relieved, but true to his word, Kenshin had eyes for no one but her. On his lips, she read the words he shouted to her. "Maintain your flame!" Then one swift kick off with his foot shot him down the alleyway in a perfect, sure line. From his side, the Kagu-tsuchi was raised until parallel to the ground before him, both hands carefully bracing it with strength and determination. Alarm colored the air from those behind her, shocked by his apparent intentions, but a smile tilted Kaoru's lips upward as her entire body relaxed in pure acceptance.

The pristine blade of the Kagu-tsuchi pierced through her so quickly she felt nothing but her body rock from the after-force of Kenshin's strike. The scarf tied loosely around her face finally gave way and slipped down around her neck, baring her glowing sapphire orbs. The whites shimmered with golden glitter, her pupils dilated and consuming, and she stared without blinking into the iridescent violet eyes of her husband. He was looking at her this time, her and only her, just as he had promised. Pain and joy coalesced within her, releasing a burst of her power, and around them the entire world stopped.

Again, Kaoru stood within that world of darkness, surrounded by millions of twinkling stars. This time, she was not afraid. This time, she smiled even before the adult form of her son materialized from out of the void and began walking towards her. Both of her hands outstretched to him, and his smile in return was tender. He squeezed her hands only briefly, however, before stepping to the side and handing her off to the man behind him.

"Kenshin!"

Throwing herself into his embrace, Kaoru hugged him tightly around the ribs. All of the stress and anxiety from the day melted away with just the feel of his arms pressing in around her back. Small kisses were nuzzled affectionately into the side of her head, and soft words of praise and love whispered into her ears. Moving on without stopping, the Kagu-tsuchi walked past Kaoru to approach what she had not seen before. While Kenshin's core flickered and roared with violet flames in the distance behind him, it was Kaoru's soul that glowed and sparkled behind her. Just within the blue sphere, a multi-colored ball of flame had grown to such a size that her soul could barely contain it. Too much longer, and she would have burst from the strain. Around the outside, in a perfect protective barrier, her onibi flame encased both, just as Kenshin had secretly asked with his hand signs. Watching from over her shoulder, Kenshin smiled, and continued to heap praise upon his wife.

"You did wonderfully, my beautiful, powerful wife. Your flame is flawless."

One of the Kagu-tsuchi's arms plunged elbow deep through the onibi flames and directly into Kaoru's human soul. Though this vision had separated them, it was Kenshin's use of the Kagu-tsuchi's power that dictated each of his movements. Just as Kenshin had hoped, the onibi flames folded inward with the opening that was created, thereby maintaining a defensive layer against the Kagu-tsuchi's pure flame of life. The largest obstacle to removing Kenji safely had been finding a way to do so without the Kagu-tsuchi coming into contact with Kaoru's soul. It had occurred to him, though only recently, that while the Kagu-tsuchi was able to counter the effects of the onibi death flame that Kaoru could conjure, there was a chance it also worked in reverse. It had been a gamble, but one he was glad had paid off. Coupled with his intimate knowledge of his wife through their marriage seal, it was much easier to differentiate what was her and what was their son. Closing his eyes, he buried his nose in Kaoru's hair in relief as the first stage of the extraction was a success.

"FORGIVE ME, BUT IT IS TIME."

While slightly reluctant to interrupt their reunion, the words were warm. Both turned toward the higher being, Kenshin's right arm remaining around her back. Ever so slightly, she could feel his hand shaking with fatigue. In the Kagu-tsuchi's arms, however, was the child form of her Kenji, and everything they had faced that day was suddenly well worth it. Instantly, Kaoru's features brightened, and the expression of delight automatically reflected onto their son's face.

"Kenji!"

"Mama! Papa!"

Scooping him into her arms, Kaoru hugged him while turning so that he was sandwiched between his parents. Grinning from ear to ear, Kenji looked straight up at them both, the top of his head pressed back into Kenshin's chest.

"Does this mean I get to come home with you now?"

Patting him gently on the head, Kenshin nodded in agreement. "That's right." Turning them both towards the way he had come, he directed them to follow the Kagu-tsuchi. "Let's go home."

The grind of time churning back into motion was abrupt, breaking the spell of that otherworld and dumping both Kaoru and Kenshin back into the alley. One blue tear had slipped from her lashes to slide down her cheek, and her smile was painfully happy. Sapphire eyes darted back and forth as she could not decide which of his pupils to focus on, and when he finally smiled in return, she blinked for the first time.

With careful heat, flames burned away the shadow tendrils holding her prisoner, and he lowered them slowly into a kneeling position on the ground. At the same time, Kenshin absorbed the heat from the lava-like expulsions at their feet. Once safely braced, and without breaking eye contact, Kenshin removed one hand from the Kagu-tsuchi's hilt to brush away Kaoru's tear and cup her cheek. The blade was still buried deep within her, but the point could not be seen exiting through her back. Just like that first time so many years before. This time, however, she could not even feel it, and it was not death that awaited her

"Ready?" It was time for the second phase of extraction. Though no longer frozen by her ability to stop time, the world around them watched in the silence such a momentous occasion deserved.

Lifting her left hand to copy his touch, her right arm still out of socket, she nodded her chin. "Ready."

Deliberately, gradually, Kenshin withdrew the Kagu-tsuchi's blade from her sternum. Intense rumbling began to shake the ground everywhere but where they knelt, growing into a violent earthquake. High in the sky overhead, a light so bright it streamed through the thick cloud cover began to expand. A shrill whistle filled the air, becoming louder as the light grew closer and as the blade was drawn farther into the open. Suddenly, a falling star pierced through the clouds, its aim for them, but as it reached the top of the buildings, the full length of the Kagu-tsuchi's blade slipped free of Kaoru's sternum and the meteor disappeared. With it vanished the intense shaking and overwhelming sound.

Like liquid floating in air, a small ball of flame popped out of Kaoru's chest and off the tip of the blade. It was tiny at first, a mere coin in size, but grew to the size of a fist within moments. Licks of fire spit and crackled around it, and its flames were beautiful and wide in range. From red to yellow, green and blue, violet and white, it was not limited by temperature as many fire elementals or flame celestials were. Kenji was destined to have control of every natural flame imaginable.

In tandem, Kaoru and Kenshin both cupped a hand under the small blaze, but it was Kaoru who spoke first. "We did it." Another tear gathered on her lashes, and she glanced at him with such joy. "See? I told you. He's just so beautiful, isn't he?" Her awe and affection drew his gaze back to her briefly, but he said nothing to instead soak in the emotions swelling in his heart.

"I AM GRATEFUL TO YOU BOTH FOR GIVING MY VESSEL LIFE."

Kaoru's grin shot back to Kenshin again before dropping to the sword in his right hand.

"What are you talking about? No child has to thank their parents for that. Oh!" The shocked noise was not overexaggerated as Kenshin also froze in surprise. In the bowl of their hands, the small flame, not even a minute old, had gathered enough strength to suppress his true form. In place of the flickering fire, a naked baby now rested, cradled between their fingers and palms. He mimicked a human baby seamlessly, but had taken after his father with a head of fiery red hair.

"Is… Is he supposed to be able to do that already?"

Violet eyes blinked, and he shook his head. "Not so early. I was five before I could suppress my form."

"Did you hear that, Kenji?" Automatically, Kaoru's hand pulled him closer to tuck him against her body. As she had only one working arm, Kenshin helped situate him properly into the crook of her left elbow. "That makes you a little genius." There was pride in her voice, and Kenshin could not help but chuckle. With slow, measured blinks, Kenji's red lashes parted to reveal his mysterious eyes of clear tanzanite. Unlike a newborn, his gaze did not shift, but focused steadily on Kaoru's face before drifting over to Kenshin when he leaned in closer. One little hand outstretched for his father, and in it appeared a flare of violet fire.

"TAKE IT."

Kenshin hesitated. "Is that mine?"

"IT IS THE PIECE OF YOUR CORE THAT WAS NECESSARY FOR MY VESSEL'S CONCEPTION."

"But… doesn't he need to keep it? Will it harm him if it's gone?"

"IT ASSISTED WITH HIS GROWTH WHILE IN DEATH'S VEIL, BUT HE HAS DEVELOPED A CORE OF HIS OWN TO SUSTAIN HIM NOW. WHILE IT HAS SOMEWHAT DIMINSHED, YOU WERE ALWAYS MEANT TO HAVE THIS PIECE BACK."

Though reassured Kenji would be fine, Kenshin continued to hesitate for reasons he could not explain, and stalled for more time while recalling the katana form of the Kagu-tsuchi back into his core. With both hands now free, he reached out slowly to wrap one hand completely around Kenji's tiny fist. The violet flame absorbed back into him easily, almost eagerly. Task done, Kenji immediately yawned and closed his eyes to rest.

Like the final puzzle piece clicking into place, Kenshin felt his core heal, and with it came several unexpected results. What looked like a gallon of blood squirted from the crossed-wound on his cheek and dumped itself out on the concrete below. It was not molten hot, as was usual for his blood, but rather brownish and half-congealed. Upon puddling on the ground, it hardened and then crumbled into a pile of ash. The wound scarred over after its expulsion, leaving a welted lesion across his face, ear, the side of his skull, and down his neck. Finally whole, his body flushed with immense, purifying power.

The disfigured, soft tips of his fingers and toes hardened with the growth of thick obsidian claws. The brittle feel of his insides from his failed transition solidified, and his skin shimmered with healthy red scales along his temples and arms. Both of the mangled and melted horns on his head revealed themselves in full pristine glory, but no longer were there only two horns sprouting from his hair, but four. Two sets of horns now twisted around themselves angling back and down, circling the top of his head like a crown before flaring up into two pairs of dangerous points. Even his violet irises shifted from iridescent to dark celestial with hints of cosmic sparks.

"Anata…" Kaoru's voice was soft with awe, her sapphire eyes bright and wide as she stared at the open change he had undergone. Blinking to focus on her, his eyesight sharper than before, he realized that the whites of her eyes were no longer golden, as they had been immediately before Kenji's birth. Even as the observation registered, her eyes rolled up into her skull and she swayed forward.

"Kaoru." Catching her and bracing a hand against Kenji to stabilize them both, he frowned when her response was sluggish. Everything should have been fine. What did this mean? What had gone wrong?

"Himura-san!"

"Ken-sama!"

From either end of the alley, he was reminded that there were others nearby. Scooping Kaoru carefully into his arms, he stood and let his gaze sweep over Tsubame, Yahiko, and Enishi along with a small group of people he did not know huddled in the street. At the sight of him, they froze, their expressions clearly reflecting the effect his new presence had on them as they all hurriedly knelt in recognition. Turning, he faced Megumi instead, who was coming quickly up behind him. She, too, paused, but was of a more stubborn disposition and therefore graced him with a quick bow of her head only. Striding towards her, he beckoned her to follow him out to the sidewalk where he leaned Kaoru into the side of the still intact building.

"Something's wrong. Can you look at her?"

Cinnamon irises landed and stared at the baby still pressed to Kaoru's chest.

"Megumi?"

Snapping to, the vixen sucked in a sharp breath. "Right." Kneeling, she checked Kaoru over with businesslike speed and surety. Kaoru's lashes started to flutter by the end of the examination, and she smiled weakly at Megumi when she pried open one eye to check the reactivity of her pupils.

"I'm fine." The assurance slurred. "Just… exhausted for some reason."

"Your heart rate is a bit slow, but not enough to be alarmed by. What's your baby's name?" Trying to keep her awake and talking, Megumi gave her a reason to speak while feeling out the dislocation of her right shoulder. Kaoru's smile widened, and her eyes dropped.

"Kenji. Isn't he beautiful?"

The vixen's eyebrows raised as she replied in rueful amusement. "He looks just like his dad."

Kaoru's nose wrinkled in happy delight. "Right?"

Manipulating the arm, Megumi skillfully popped Kaoru's right shoulder back into its socket. A long breath eased from Kaoru's lips, and she leaned her head back into the building in relief. "Thanks for that." Now she could protect her baby with both arms.

"What's wrong with her?" Kneeling at Kaoru's other side, Kenshin braced a hand gently under her spine.

Pivoting to turn her attention back on Kenshin, Megumi gave him a droll look. "My diagnosis, fatigue. Even if it was unconventional, she did just have a baby. A baby, by-the-way, that you owe a major explanation for." Kenshin opened his mouth, his eyes already frowning, and she waved a hand dismissively. "Later, obviously. I can deduce the most important parts on my own. Right now, we need to take into consideration what has happened with you." She indicted his full rack of horns with a pointed claw. "I got a pretty good look at that marriage seal, and you're sharing power, correct? That means this transition of yours is affecting her, too. How long have you been married?"

The lines between Kenshin's brows scrunched, slightly in worry, but mostly in shame for not realizing how hard sharing his power would be on her. "Yesterday."

Using the longest finger of her right hand to rub the middle of her forehead, Megumi rolled her eyes under closed lids. "She should have been confined to bed rest for the first full week afterwards. There's no telling how her human body is handling it all."

"I only meant to move her to the lab. I figured it was the best place to determine how to get Kenji out safely."

"Excuse me?" Cinnamon eyes popped open incredulously and Kenshin knew he had messed up. "Determine?" Her voice hissed, and she stood up threateningly. "You said you knew what you were doing?"

"I got it done." Defensive, he stood as well.

"Ugh! This is exactly why I wasn't going to let you through the barrier on just your word alone. You rely too much on force and dumb luck." Through an alleyway further up the street, Yahiko's group appeared, having bypassed using the alley Kaoru had been held captive in and making their way over through safer avenues.

"That's not…" Kenshin's expression hardened, and his mouth thinned as something else caught his attention. Abandoning their argument, he turned his chin sharply towards the east and stared for three long seconds up into the sky. With his left hand, he offered Kaoru his open palm.

"Kaoru, give me your hair charm."

X

The dark domain that had drowned the city in a void of black had not quite reached the coastline where the Sky Emperor and Okina battled. Due to the intensity of their strikes and the backlash of strong wind, very little remained on the coastline at all. The leftover rubble from the Sky Palace and the crushed city buildings below it had been swept away, either into the ocean or further into the city, like a child stuffing everything under their bed to clear the floor. Only the foundations, basement floors, and cracked streets were left as the clash of a sky dragon and sky demon distorted the wind patterns and created dangerous up and down drafts at the level of a typhoon.

"You're disrespecting my graciousness, Okina." Hovering above him, the Emperor looked down his nose at his opponent in clear superiority. "I could have killed you along with that abomination you made with that human wife of yours. I spared you only out of mercy."

"Mercy?" Switching his grip on the tonfa in either hand, Okina pointed one of the blunt weapons at the Emperor. "Making me watch as you executed my only daughter was mercy? It's clear you don't understand the word."

"Mercy was giving her a quick death. I should have tortured her for deceiving me into creating another abomination." A sickle of sharp air shot downward upon Okina's position, cleaving open the ground when he dodged. He appeared directly behind the Emperor, his voice shaking with anger.

"You will watch your tongue when you speak of my granddaughter."

Blocking his attack with one hand, the Emperor turned, his features annoyed. "Your threats are as weak as your attacks. It's no wonder she is such a disappointment. I mean to discipline her when this is over. If she had at least come close to killing me, I might have even rewarded her effort with a quick death like her mother." Throwing Okina down into the rubble, the Emperor meant to follow up with a high-powered attack, but something shivered down his spine in distraction. The air crackled with heat, and inside his chest, his heart shriveled in foreign fear. A great well of energy had just manifested far off to the west, purifying what had once been tainted and turning it into tranquil dominance. It snapped in authority, and weighed down upon his body in demand that he submit.

A new dragon had come into power, endangering his uncontested seat as emperor.

"Himura."

It would be best if he was put down and imprisoned immediately.

X

A/N: I know this isn't good a thing, but I don't really care about the Emperor, so it's hard to write about him, lol. Knowing that, I'm going to try to work on him a bit more so his portions aren't so wonky. I love little baby Kenji, and adult Kenji, too. I hope everyone liked reading this part as much as I liked writing it. I feel like my daydreams are so much cooler than my writing ends up being, but I hope I at least did it half as much justice as my imaginings. Thank you for reading and sticking with me this long! This story has gotten so very long, and I'm really surprised at myself for continuing. Next up, some fire, from three different sources. Thank you again for the reviews. Love you!